Packaging apparatus



June 28, 1966 w. c. GILMAN ETAL 3,257,771

PACKAGING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 10, 1965 June 1966 w. c. GlLMAN ETAL 3,257,771

PACKAGING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 10, 1963 Fig.5

United States Patent 3,257,771 PACKAGING APPARATUS Wayne C. Gilman, Spartanburg, S.C., and Joseph R. Paradis, Wayland, Mass., assignors to W. R. Grace & C0., Duncan, S.C., a corporation of Connecticut Filed Apr. 10, 1963, Ser. No. 271,897 6 Claims. (Cl. 53390) This invention relates to packaging apparatus and more particularly to apparatus useful in forming trayless fruit packages.

At present, essentially all fresh fruit is shipped in bulk from producing areas to areas of consumption. At the latter locations the fruit is packaged by terminal packers, distributors, or central warehouses for final retail sales. Because of lower wages in the rural areas, and because otherwise two packaging operations must be maintained, there is a trend toward retail packaging at the producing area.

Presently, most fresh oranges, apples, lemons and grapefruit, are packaged in ventilated polyethylene bags for final retail consumption. Polyethylene bags lack sheen, hold four or five pounds of fruit, making them heavy for housewives to handle, give poor product visibility, and, when packaged, are cumbersome to ship. Because of this, the produce industry has begun to turn its attention, particularly for premium grades of fruits, toward six and eight unit packages which can be packaged at the producing area and easily shipped to areas of consumption. The present method is to place six or eight units in a tray, overwrap the tray and product with heat shrinkable film and then shrink the film, giving a final retail package.

However, loosening of film due to relaxation and/or improper shrink, and tray breakdown from moisture pick-up commonly occurs during shipping.

Redesigning the pulp trays only minimizes the problem. Redesign can also be costly because a different tray is necessary for different fruits. Furthermore, a sharp fluctuation in humidity during storage prior to or during shipping could cause the problem to persist, even with specially designed trays.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a packing jig for use in preparing trayless packages.

A specific object is to provide a device to hold the articles to be packaged in proper positional relationship for trayless packaging and to restrain the partially overlapped heat shrinkable film in place around the articles while the film is heat shrunk to form the trayless package.

Further objects will become apparent from the following description and claims, and from the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective View of a packaging jig constructed in accordance with the invention;

FIGURE 2 is an end view showing an intermediate stage in the formation of a trayless package using the jig of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 isa perspective view of a completed trayless package made with the device of this invention;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of another jig which has a preferred type of film restraining means; and

FIGURE 5 is an end view showing schematically the operation of the device of FIGURE 4.

Referring in particular to FIGURE 1 of the drawings, it is seen that the packaging jig comprises a plurality of spaced, generally parallel bars On each bar there is at least one product positioning means 11. As illustrated, each of these means comprises a plurality of spaced fingers 12 rising substantially vertically upwards from the top surface of bars 10 and arranged radially about a point on the longitudinal center line of the bars. The upper portions 13 of fingers 12 are smoothly rounded to preclude bruising, puncturing or otherwise damaging 3,257,771 Patented June 28, 1966 product resting thereon. The fingers project upwardly for a distance sufficient to elevate the product and intermediately disposed film (see e.g. FIGURE 2) at least slightly above bars 10. Apertures 30 are cut through the bars 10 to permit free circulation of heated air or other gas, and consequent substantially uniform heat shrinkage of substantially all portions of the film wrapper.

Film restraining means 14 are mounted at each end of the bars 10. One or both of the restraining means is capable of being reciprocally slid back and forth along the length of the bar 10. In FIGURE 1 the restraining means comprise L-shaped bars, one leg 16 of which is positioned in a slot 17 cut through the bars 10. To this leg there is secured in each instance a leaf spring 18. At the top of the upstanding legs 19 are plate 20 to temporarily hold the packaging film during the Wrapping operation. Recesses 21 in these plates accommodate the top of the leaf springs when the latter are under compression.

In operation the spacing between bars 10 is adjusted so that the particular products to be packaged will rest in the product holders in a touching position. Then a sheet of heat shrinkable thermoplastic film F is placed over the packaging jig while the film restrainers are open. One end of the film sheet rests on one of the longitudinal rows of plates 20, and the other end hangs down beyond the other longitudinal row of plates. After products, e.g. oranges 40, are placed on the product holders, this latter longer extended end of film is manually or mechanically grasped and pulled over, and down the opposite row of oranges. The film restrainers are then moved toward each other. This action causes the shorter edge of the film to pull off the plates upon which it is resting and lap over the previously wrapped film. Thus a longitudinal overlap is formed along the side of one row of products resting in the jig (see FIGURE 2). The film is held firmly in place by the action of the restrainer springs 18 as it passes through a hot air shrink tunnel or other known equivalent means for heat shrinking the film tightly about the enclosed products. The overlapped longitudinal film edge shrinks against and becomes locked to the underlying film at points where the edges overlap and bear against the enclosed objects. Heat required to shrink the film combined with the tension exerted by the shrinking film is sufiicient to provide a positive heatseal. The open ends of the tube shrink back against the object, gripping the objects butleaving a smalloval opening 41, the film edges of which are somewhat thickened.

The completed package after removal from the packaging jig is illustrated in FIGURE 3. The package is especially suitable for horticultural items because of the opening 41 at each end which permits circulation of air through the package. Of course, non-horticultural items can also be packaged in this manner.

In FIGURES 4 and 5 another (and a preferred) type of film restrainer is used. These film restrainers comprise weighted bars 25 attached to or integral with pivot arms 26. The pivot arms are connected to extensions on reciprocal bars 28 by pivot pins 27. The shape of varms 26, or the type of pivot connection and/or the height of the pivoted connection is chosen so as to permit the weighted bars to slide up the sides of product in the jig when the restrainer assemblies are moved towards each other.

Operation is generally quite similar to that described above in connection with FIGURES 1 and 2. After film F is placed over the jig, product to be packaged is placed thereover, one end of the film is brought over and pulled down around the sides of one row of product and the restrainers moved together to lap the short end of film over the previously wrapped film. The weighted bars simultaneously slide up the sides of the product and rest on the film, holding it firmly in place as it passes through the hot air shrink tunnel or other like heating means (see FIGURE 5 The weighted bars 25 give more positive film restraining action than the leaf springs 18. Furthermore this action remains substantially constant over a long period of time, whereas the leaf springs often tend to lose resiliency and provide less uniform restraint after relatively shorter periods of constant use.

While use of the device of this invention has been illustrated in connection with packaging of oranges, it is to be understood that numerous other products can also be packaged in the same manner, e.g., grapefruits, apples, pears, plums, lemons, onions, avacados, etc. and a wide variety of non-horticultural products too numerous to mention.

Any heat shrinkage thermoplastic film can be employed in conjunction with the inventive apparatus. These include, but are not limited to, irradiated, biaxially oriented polyethylene films prepared as described, e.g., in Baird et al. US. Patent 3,022,543; oriented polypropylene films, oriented polyvinyl chloride films, oriented polystrene films, etc.

For maximum utility it is usually preferred to construct the device so that the lateral spacing between the parallel bars 10 and/or the transverse spacing between product positioning means or holders 11 is adjustable so that the same jig can be used for packaging products of various sizes.

While the above description is necessarily detailed it is to be understood that various rearrangements of parts, and use of alternate elements or combinations of elements may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

What is claimed is:

1. Trayless packaging apparatus comprising (a) a plurality of spaced substantially parallel bars having a slot recess in the upper surface thereof;

4 (b) at least one product holder in the middle portion of each bar; and a (c) a film restraining means at each end of each bar having at least one of said restraining means slidably reciprocable in said slot recess toward and away from said product holder.

2. Device as defined in claim 1 wherein the spacing between said parallel bars is adjustable.

3. Device as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said film restraining means is reciprocable.

4. Device as defined in claim 1 wherein (a) said film restraining means comprise leaf springs mounted on an unstanding L-bar having a vertical leg and a horizonal leg;

(b) the vertical leg of each L-bar has a substantially horizontal plate secured thereto; and

(c) the said horizintal leg slides in said slot recess in the spaced parallel bars.-

5. Device as defined in claim 1 wherein said film restraining means comprises weighted bars pivotally connected to a member slidably reciprocable in said slot recess so as to slide up the side of product in said product holding means as the restraining means are moved References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3/1890 Bateson 53390 9/1935 Lindberg 53-219 FRANK E. BAILEY, Primary Examiner.

P. H. POHL, Assistant Examiner. 

1. TRAYLESS PACKAGING APPARATUS COMPRISING (A) A PLURALITY OF SPACED SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL BARS HAVING A SLOT RECESS IN THE UPPER SURFACE THEREOF; (B) AT LEAST ONE PRODUCT HOLDER IN THE MIDDLE PORTION OF EACH BAR; AND (C) A FILM RESTRAINING MEANS AT EACH END OF EACH BAR HAVING AT LEAST ONE OF SAID RESTRAINING MEANS SLIDABLY RECIPROCABLE IN SAID SLOT RECESS TOWARD AND AWAY FROM SAID PRODUCT HOLDER. 